


Slaves of the Republic

by Ahmose007



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Prequel Trilogy, Star Wars: Clone Wars (2003) - All Media Types, Star Wars: The Clone Wars (2008) - All Media Types
Genre: Abuse of Authority, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Amnesia, Angst, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Anxiety, Awkward Sexual Situations, Control Issues, Dark, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Eventual Romance, Eventual Smut, F/M, Guilt, Hurt CT-7567 | Rex, Implied/Referenced Abuse, Manipulation, POV Ahsoka Tano, POV CT-7567 | Rex, Planet Zygerria (Star Wars), Rex has amnesia, Rexsoka Week (Star Wars), Rexsoka Week 2020 (Star Wars), Sexual Tension, Slaver Rex, Slavery, Slow Build, Slow Burn, Slow Romance, Suspense, Tension, Threats of Rape/Non-Con, Threats of Violence, Unresolved Sexual Tension, Zygerria Arc (Star Wars: Clone Wars), Zygerrians (Star Wars), rexsoka, slight AU
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-03-11
Updated: 2021-03-16
Packaged: 2021-03-17 21:26:58
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 12,816
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29972511
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ahmose007/pseuds/Ahmose007
Summary: During a desperate bid to save he Togruta, Rex, Ahsoka, Anakin and Obi-Wan go undercover as Zygerrian slavers. When Obi-Wan is caught, an attempt is made to free him and things go horribly wrong. Obi-Wan and Ahsoka are captured, Anakin is trying to convince the queen to tell him where the Togruta and his friends are so he can free them and Rex... Rex has amnesia and has been brainwashed by the Zygerrians into believing he's a slaver.The pressure is on and things get really complicated when the Royal Slave Auction is re-scheduled for a couple weeks out and Rex is assigned to guard Ahsoka until then.
Relationships: CT-7567 | Rex & Ahsoka Tano, CT-7567 | Rex/Ahsoka Tano
Comments: 33
Kudos: 47





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> Unfortunately, I still don't own Star Wars or any of it's characters
> 
> Thank you so much as always to sushifish! This time, you inspired my work as well as looking it over for me. You are amazing and I appreciate all that you do! 💕

**Rex's POV**

_Your Highness, Zygerrians, and guests from a thousand worlds, our auction begins with slaves of unmatched quality and impossible quantity!_

He could see the brightly colored clothing, hear the thunderous cheering of the crowd, the atmosphere electric and pulsing with energy and excitement. He couldn’t remember where he was standing at the time but it was in a spot where he had a clear and unobstructed view of the scene around him. He couldn’t remember his own reaction, whether he was as overwhelmed with the thrill of it all as they were or whether he’d been focused solely on doing his job at the time. Probably some combination of both, he reflected idly.

He could see the man clearly as he walked out, hunched and broken. Defeated. 

_This handsome sample represents a lot of numbering. No less than 50,000 beings!_

The roar from the crowd had been deafening, assaulting his senses then, just as the memory of it was almost overpowering them now. Had he cheered with them? He couldn’t remember. He must have. That would have been what he was supposed to do; what they expected of him.

_Note the compliance._

They’d beaten the man at the foot of the dais. He’d whimpered and pleaded but the guards, his friends, hadn’t even blinked, no pause or hesitation in their wrists as they’d cracked the electro-whips across his sagging shoulders. 

His brow furrowed in concentration. They hadn’t asked him to help. He’d been...somewhere else...only he couldn’t remember where. But he did know that he hadn’t been one of the men who had beaten that already broken man from Kiros. Why _hadn’t_ he been part of that group?

_Virtually untrained in combat_.

They’d hauled the man up to where they could grab his arms, then they’d dragged him carelessly up the steps, his frail body just hanging there as limp as a rag doll, his expensive clothes snagging and tearing on the unforgiving stone. They’d tossed him down on his knees in the center of the stage and yanked his head harshly up so that the crowd could get a good look at him, this fragile shell of what was once a great leader of 50,000 beings.

_There will be no rebellion from these slaves!_

He was right. If this man was an example of the rest of the people of Kiros, the auctioneer was indeed correct. There was absolutely no chance of rebellion within this group. Part of him felt sorry for him - for all of them. But that wasn’t right. Sorrow and feelings of compassion didn’t have a place for him. They didn’t have a place _here_. This was how things should be. The weak should be made to serve the strong. This man, and likely his people too, were obviously weak and it was therefore their fate to bend to the will of the strong. Rex was one of the strong ones and it was his duty to keep the frail in line, to make sure that the feeble knew their place and remembered it.

_Before we begin the auction, I would welcome a most special guest: Obi-Wan Kenobi, Jedi knight!_

The guards on the platform ruthlessly shoved the broken man from Kiros to the side, his sound of pain and helplessness smothered in the bellowing of the crowd as they watched in eager anticipation of the new arrival. 

_Obi-Wan Kenobi, Jedi knight_... those words sparked and flared in his mind, embers fizzling and smoking but failing to conjure the necessary fire. There was nothing more than a blank space in his mind, a dark and unpainted corner where there should be a clear picture. Of what, he didn’t know but the blank space unnerved him. He didn’t know this strange and defiant man any more than he knew the man from Kiros but nevertheless he wondered at that dark area in his memories. It reflected some unasked question, some mystery yet to be explained and he detested mysteries. He relied on facts, orders and tasks. He needed structure and familiarity. That’s what was comfortable for him and what gave his life meaning and purpose. This blank space was unacceptable but no matter how much he probed it, it remained obstinately dark and empty.

_Down with the Jedi! The Jedi are not so tough!_

The audience was jeering, openly taunting and threatening the resilient man on the dais, but he just looked defiantly back, his face set and his eyes like sharpened steel even through his broken nose and the dried blood caked into his beard. Rex could almost admire this man if he’d been in a different place and position. Strength and courage were virtues that he and his people prized above most others and this man radiated those qualities in vast quantities. But this wasn’t another time and place and he was who he was, and that meant he wasn’t allowed to pity or admire this man. He was allowed only to keep him in line, to keep him in his place firmly beneath the boot of the Zygerrian people.

_My friends, my good friends, do not fear the Jedi. They are no different from others we have forced into submission, for they have forsaken their ideals to serve a corrupt Senate._

Queen Miraj was speaking now and the crowd was roaring again, their applause pounding in his eardrums beneath his cumbersome helmet. Her words sparked more thoughts that didn’t make sense. Somewhere way down deep inside, he was sure he’d heard of a war that no one was winning. There was something to do with a Senate he was sure, but he thought maybe he’d heard somewhere it was a _good_ Senate. He didn’t really know anything about it though, just vague and murky rumors, phrases and stray thoughts floating around in the deepest recesses of his mind, many of which didn’t make any sense. He usually ignored them in favor of focusing on tangible things, things he could comprehend and which were useful in his day to day life. The war, whatever was going on with it, didn’t affect him or his life and therefore it was not something to dwell on or inquire about further.

_Every Jedi has become a slave to the Republic._

He watched the self-assured man on the platform, _Obi-Wan Kenobi_ , as he clenched his fists, every line in his body now pulled taut and ready to spring into action. 

Although Rex didn’t know where he’d been at the time, he remembered carefully watching his movements and taking note of his body posture, alert to any small gesture. But he wasn’t assigned to bring in the slaves this time, so why had he been paying such all-consuming attention? He was probably just being vigilant. It was his natural state of being to stand tall and formal, to scrutinize everything to a high degree as though looking for treachery around every corner. He’d probably just been scanning everything out of habit and those little tells in the Jedi’s posture had caught his eye. 

_The Republic..._ those words led a winding and hazy path to another shadowy corner of his mind. There was something hiding behind those words, a concept maybe, a purpose, _something_ he couldn’t lock onto and something which was buried deep inside in a place he couldn’t access. He didn’t know if it was important or not, whatever was hiding from his shrewd and prying eyes, but it irked him more than he could express that he was unable to penetrate that darkness and discover what it was. 

He huffed in frustration and came back to his memory. Or what was left of it anyway.

_The Jedi order is weak, and we will help break it!_

The patrons in the stands went completely wild at this. He could hear them now, all blaring voices and hostile jeering, as though he were surrounded by them, enveloped in their madness. 

_Whip the Jedi! Whip the Jedi! Whip the Jedi! Whip the Jedi!_

His memories were already beginning to blur, melting into the scene around him until each gossamer tendril of thought blended into another one and he couldn't tell them apart anymore. Until he couldn't tell what was real anymore. 

_Prove to me you are a slaver. Swing that whip, or die beside him_.

This man was no slaver, that much he knew with certainty. But what was he? He was _different_ somehow, but the memories were all a blur now and he could barely see through the fog. His eyes caught the red electric light as the whip came to life, he heard the faint hum as it built up a charge. He couldn’t see the man’s face anymore, only the whip as he raised it in his hand.

_You leave me no choice, Highness!_

The words rang out, echoing as they ricocheted around in his mind, struggling to find purchase and meaning. What remained of his thoughts and memories were flashing in front of him now at such a high velocity he couldn’t catch them. He couldn’t hang on to anything anymore other than indistinct words, phrases or feelings.

_Guards! Subdue them!_

Men were falling, his friends and fellow soldiers. The man on the platform was standing now, fighting with a glowing sword that looked both familiar and unfamiliar at the same time. Another something that didn’t make sense. Whips were cracking, winding around arms - the arms of the Jedi, he remembered. He was running and there was a gun in his hand. He’d shot some men, but he was unable to see their faces. Had they been more Jedi? Spectators in the crowd who had become too rowdy or who had gotten in his way? It was no use - they were no more than shadowy, faceless blurs in his mind as they dropped to the ground and he raced on, desperate to get somewhere. 

But where? His hands had balled into fists at his sides now as he fought to find the truth. But just like all the other times he’d tried, he failed. He could recall the desperation, the frantic need driving him to get _somewhere_ as soon as he could. It was urgent, life or death, and _someone_ needed him to do _something_ . But the _what_ in this story always escaped him, just as it did now. And then he was falling… and that was the last thing he remembered before a murky black mist enshrouded his mind completely and there was nothing more to see. There was only blank space. 

That is, until he’d awoken in the medical facility with a large and painful knot on the back of his head and no memory of his life up to that point. He’d stayed in the medical facility for a few days, constantly being drilled with facts and questions. He’d forgotten much during the battle along with his entire life before it, and they were making sure he remembered who he was and what his life entailed. He had been scared when he’d awoken there, it had felt...wong... _dangerous_ somehow. But they’d given him a shot of something and then they’d reminded him of who he was and many of the things he’d forgotten. 

Many, but not all. They wouldn’t tell him anything about the Jedi, the war, those blank spaces in his mind that no one seemed to be able to fill in. But he was grateful that they’d filled him in on who he was and given him back his purpose in life. He was Captain Rex, one of the leaders in charge of the Zygerrian army, his main duties were to guard prisoners and train new cadets in fighting techniques. His job was his life and he had no hobbies and only a few friends. They told him he put duty above all else and it was his duty to keep the prisoners in line and his troops safe. 

It felt true - it felt right. He didn’t question it then and he didn’t question it now. There was no reason to question it. But those murky memories swirling around just tantalizingly out of reach were taunting him. Whispering secrets that he didn’t yet understand but which he could somehow feel were pivotal to his life. 

To those missing and essential pieces of him, maybe gone forever.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ahsoka spends her evening in the dungeon and Rex goes out drinking with his friends. It's a toss up who has the worse night.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own Star Wars or any of its characters.
> 
> Thank you as always to sushifish for being so amazing and proofing this/giving me her fantastic opinion always. I appreciate her so much! 💗
> 
> This chapter does have mentions of implied sexual abuse of an OC and in general it is a fic set in a slavery story arc so there are some darker topics and issues and negative/insulting language.

**Ahsoka’s POV**

She had to admit, this might be one of the  _ worst _ plans her Master had ever come up with. And that was saying a lot because most of his plans really weren’t well thought out at all. 

What had he been thinking? Just march in dressed as slavers, with  _ her _ playing the part of the slave of course, Anakin would distract the queen and somehow trick her into telling them where the people of Kiros were, then they’d all free her people and march right back out. Piece of joganfruit cake. 

She rolled her eyes. She really shouldn’t be surprised that it hadn’t worked out. 

She looked around, taking stock once more of her surroundings. She was in a cell in what felt like the deepest pit in the palace. There was a sliver of a window carved into the wall behind her, no more than a slice of light leaking through in between the strong stones. Her cell itself was cold, dark and sparsely furnished. There was a cot and a chair and a really basic and tiny fresher, the smallest she’d ever seen, and that was it. It was big enough that she could pace if she so desired, but there wasn’t much room to do anything more than that.

It was hard to tell with the limited sunlight and her relative unfamiliarity with this system as a whole, but if she had to guess, she’d say she’d been here for at least 4 rotations. In that time, she hadn’t seen or heard from Anakin, Obi-Wan or Rex. The plan had been so vague there wasn’t even a contingency for what she was supposed to do if they all got caught. Would Anakin expect her to rescue him? Did he even  _ need _ rescuing? He usually did, but from behind the dank and dreary walls of her temporary prison she had no way to know for sure. How long was she supposed to sit here and do nothing while the people of Kiros, her people, were in danger?

She began to pace again. 

“You may as well sit down and get comfortable, little skug,” sneered the guard. “You’re gonna be here awhile yet.” He chuckled softly, the sound making her blood boil. B’nur was his name. She’d heard one of the other guards mention it and she’d taken note, just in case it might come in handy later. He was unpleasant, rude and disgusting, just like all the rest, but he usually let her do as she pleased. Not that she could do much, she reflected bitterly. The other guards were worse. In the case of Sari, much worse. 

Sari actually scared her a little, and that was hard to do. He was quieter than the rest, barely speaking to her in fact, but he would stalk her with his eyes, always keeping them trained on her body when she moved. It made her feel exposed, vulnerable, and more than a little unnerved and uncomfortable, which was probably his goal in doing it in the first place. To break her spirit. She took heart in the knowledge that he had not yet followed his gaze with any type of action and she was unwilling to reach out with the Force to find out any more about his intentions. Part of her didn’t want to know because if she found something that would somehow make the whole thing that much worse. 

And in any case, she could handle herself if he dared to try anything more than look at her. She was a disciplined Jedi and she could easily handle Sari or all of the slavers put together if she had to, with or without her lightsabers and with or without this annoying shock collar they had attached around her neck. She wished she had her lightsabers, but she was confident she could take on any of them without them if she needed to. She just hoped she wouldn’t need to.

She concluded her frivolous pacing and sat down on the bed. She’d been retracing her steps long enough now that B’nur couldn’t taunt her for accepting his earlier suggestion that she quit moving and sit still. She refused to give him - or any of them - even the hint of satisfaction.

She heard movements, heavy steps and the creaking of a chair as B’Nur stood up. It must be time for the shift change. She’d paid close attention to these things too. There were only two shifts: morning and evening. Morning was usually B’Nur and evening was usually Sari, although once someone named Mejja had taken the evening shift. Although she was sure he was just as nasty as his fellow guards, his presence had been almost a relief in place of Sari’s on that one shift. 

Her montrals perked up as she listened intently to the conversation that followed, hoping to glean any valuable fragments of information on the fate of her friends, the fate of her people, or her own situation.

“Evening, Sari!” A frown overtook her lips.  _ Kriff _ . Of course it was. Why couldn’t it have been literally  _ anyone  _ else? 

“How are you tonight, B’Nur?”

“Can’t complain. Ready to get outta here though. Rex and I are heading over to Zadoks for drinks.” Her eyes widened and she froze.  _ Rex… He said Rex... _ “Shame you’re stuck here tonight or I’d ask you to join us. Mejja and Zaaj will be there so you know it’ll be a good time.”

“Oh, I am sorry I’ll have to miss that. But don’t you worry about me. I think I can have a good time here as well.”

Ahsoka’s blood turned to ice at his statement and her mind began to race. She took stock one last time of the furniture in her cell, assessing what could be used as a weapon if needed. She willed herself to calm down. He had said things like that before and done nothing. There was no reason to believe that this time would be any different. He was likely just doing it to spark a reaction in her, to watch her eyes dart around almost fearfully. It made him proud to earn that response from her - from a Jedi. She sat up straighter and held her head higher, defiant. 

_ Not today, buddy.  _

“Be careful Sari, the queen said to leave this one alone. She’s got plans for her.”

“Oh, don’t fret. I’m  _ always  _ careful.”

“Alright, I’m just sayin’ you might want to watch yourself with this one. Atai was telling me that the queen’s dead set on punishing these Jedi for crashing the auction last week. She’s got that one Jedi lo -”

She heard a scuffle, fabric rustling, feet moving swiftly and then their voices dropped to whispers. Her montrals were straining to pick up the rest of the conversation but all she could catch were snippets, fragments of what she needed to know as both guards dropped their voices.

Sari’s low growl, “Shhh! You can’t….”

B’Nur’s voice saying, “Not like she can....never reach…”

Sari cut over him, “That’s not the point! You need to…”

B’Nur saying, “...that other Jedi with the queen…”

_ Ah, so maybe Anakin was still with the queen?  _

Well, that was good and bad news. The good news was that maybe he wasn’t imprisoned or killed yet and he was still in place at the queen’s side attempting to gather the information that they needed. The bad news was everything else. It meant she still didn’t know what had become of Obi-Wan and Rex, it meant they still didn’t know the location of her people, and not quite the worst of all but certainly right up there near the top of the bad news ladder, it meant that she would have to stay here in this dank cell longer. 

She let out a small huff of frustration.

They were still talking but their voices had dropped even lower and now she was having trouble catching anything of the conversation, but it didn’t stop her from trying, her montrals working as hard as they could to pick anything up. 

After another beat, the murmuring ceased entirely and she heard more shuffling and movement. The conversation must be over and now the changing of the shift would happen.  _ Kriffing great _ .

Sari called after B’nur, “Tell Captain Rex and the others I’m sorry I missed them tonight, but I’ll buy them a drink after the auction. We’ll all be pretty busy until then I suspect.”

She froze again, her mind sparking and sputtering like an overloaded circuit board. He’d said  _ Captain Rex _ … He said they were all going out for drinks? Rex was not a Zygerrian name, but maybe she was just being overly hopeful for any news of her friend. Or maybe it  _ was  _ actually him? Maybe he’d infiltrated the Zygerrian army in an attempt to garner the intelligence they had been searching for? That was really unlikely but maybe not completely impossible... None of this made sense, but maybe it was a clue. Maybe she could use this nugget of information to get more and better details on the situation. It was an effort to pull herself away from her thoughts to focus back on the reality around her.

B’Nur sounded like he was already halfway up the stairs to exit the dungeon when he replied. “I’ll tell him. You have a good night!”

“Oh, I will.”

She shivered, unable to stop the reaction. He hadn’t been watching her so she fervently hoped he hadn’t caught it out of the corner of his eye. He just had this way about him that set her on edge. He turned to face her, leaning casually against the opposite wall, a smirk creeping across his face. His cold and emotionless eyes settled somewhere around her neck before drifting lazily upwards to catch her eyes. 

Normally she would have looked away, found something to keep her occupied, but not tonight. Tonight she was determined to get information.

“I didn’t know the Zygerrian army had Captains.”

Silence. He just stared.

“How come I’ve never seen this Captain Rex guy? Is he too far above you to guard the prisoners?”

That earned her a barely audible scoff. She ran with it. 

“Yeah, I guess they leave guarding the slaves to you lower level minions. He gets to go have drinks while you get stuck here.”

“Your pitiful attempts to get me to tell you what you want to know won’t work,  _ skug _ .” His voice was low and quiet, but his tone was screaming the word at her with such cold and concentrated hatred that the contrast of the two things caused a small shiver to creep down her spine and rattle her bones. The smirk twitched on his lips as though he were deciding whether to widen it or drop it entirely in favor of a frown.

“Oh, I’m just stating a fact. He’s out there having a good time and you're stuck here.”

"Oh, I'm not ‘stuck’ anywhere. I  _ requested _ this duty."

Her stomach dropped to the floor. She forced herself to display no reaction to that statement, no matter how much it unnerved and frightened her.

"Did you know that, little  _ skug?  _ That I always request this shift?" He pulled away from the wall for emphasis, not really a step towards her cell, but the threat of one. 

Her mind began to race, fleeting thoughts bumping into each other as she began to panic just a little. She had her skills. She had weapons, minimal though they were, her fists, her legs, the chair. She had the Force if worse came to worse.

His smirk did widen, looking for all the world as though he could sense her fear. She caught a glimpse of his sharp teeth. He didn't make any further movements, merely held his position, letting her feel his control and dominance as he leered at her. 

She tried again to steer the conversation where she wanted it to go. She was proud that her voice displayed no trace of her fear. "Rex isn't a Zygerrian name."

"Isn't it?"

She was sure it wasn't…

"No," she said with conviction. "It's not. I bet he doesn't look like you either."

That eerie and slightly disturbed smile widened impossibly further and she clearly saw his teeth this time. He made sure of it. He chuckled but the sound held no mirth. It sounded like the scrape of a starship hull along the rough, slick floor of an aircraft hangar, a grating sound that would have made her hair stand on end if she'd had any. 

"Oh, I think you'd find his face to be… _ familiar _ ."

Her heart was pounding now with hope as much as adrenaline. 

"He's certainly nothing unique. Nothing special. Nothing you haven't seen a million times since you were captured."

The implication of his words was not lost on her. The one thing that was clear though was that he was only offering her these scraps of information because he was hoping to torture her with it. Hoping to elicit the reaction he wanted to see. 

"So you're saying he looks like you?" If he saw fit to answer her, she'd know the truth.  _ Please, please answer me… _

That pained grimace impersonating a smile on his lips twitched again. He took one small step towards her and it took everything she had not to retreat to the very back of her cell. That seemed to make him genuinely happy and he rewarded her with an answer, although it wasn't at all what she'd hoped for. 

"He's just like me, actually _.  _ He's a  _ man _ . A man who is probably in that bar right now drinking away his paycheck like I will be later. A man who might even be fucking some random little  _ skug _ who was stupid enough to cross his path tonight." His eyes were flashing dangerously now, his meaning transparent even though he hadn't yet taken any additional steps towards her. 

She willed herself not to react, not to surrender even one step backwards. She dug her heels in, holding her ground, but she wasn't going to push it. She knew this was probably more than he’d initially intended to give her and it was more than enough for her brain to sort out. There was nothing to be gained by pushing this volatile man any further. 

She stood silently, watching the flames in his eyes begin to very slowly snuff themselves out. Finally, when they were nothing more than smoke and dying embers, she turned her back on him, striding to the chair and sitting down. He hadn't moved from where he was standing, and his eyes snapped down between her legs as soon as she sat. She crossed her legs and fought back the nausea and roiling unease that had dropped into the pit of her stomach again. 

She willed herself to focus on Rex… or this man that  _ might _ be Rex. 

Rex was definitely not a Zygerrian name, of that she was sure. But it could be that he was some foreigner that had ended up here and then made his way up through the ranks in the army. She didn't think the Zygerrian army was structured like that of the GAR and she _didn't_ _think_ they had Captains, but she wasn't positive on that. Her Captain Rex _would_ have been clever and brave enough to infiltrate the Zygerrian army in the hopes of ferreting out useful information, and the theory of that being the case wasn't _completely_ impossible. But it was highly unlikely. A move like that would take time, and while she'd been in this cell too long for her taste, it wasn't nearly long enough for a plan that intricate to take shape. And there was just no way, _no way at all_ , that the Captain Rex she knew would drink away a paycheck or…

She vehemently fought the blush that was straining to reach her cheeks at the thought of him… well,  _ like that _ . Unbidden, an image assaulted her thoughts. His strong, hard body hovering over her own, hands gripping her wrists firmly above her head, muscles rippling and flexing as he pounded into her. 

Sari had just turned away to resume his own seat and she was never in her life more thankful for someone ignoring her. 

She took a few quiet, deep breaths and attempted to smother the arousal beginning to pool between her legs at the filthy image her mind had just projected. If she was honest with herself, she  _ had  _ thought about Rex sexually before, just maybe not so graphically or in such a dominating position. She had always pushed such thoughts aside as impossible and frankly unhelpful, just as she did now. Not only had he never displayed even the slightest hint that these feelings might be reciprocal, but in this situation especially, it wasn't a good idea for her mind to wander to such forbidden places. 

As Sari shifted his chair around to fully face her, those cold and calculating eyes boring a pair of holes into her skin, she cleared her mind and steeled herself for another long and sleepless night. 

**Rex's POV**

Zadoks was crowded tonight, the atmosphere rowdy and boisterous. Mejja and Zaaj were already there and saving them a table when he and B’Nur had arrived a couple of hours ago. He’d ordered the first round for the group, a tihaar for himself and a glass of Trandoshan ale for each of his companions. Mejja had bought the next round. Zaaj had purchased the third. 

He was on his third glass of tihaar now and its potency had long since begun to affect his reactions. The conversations were becoming a bit fuzzy, the noise around him a bit too oppressive. But his friends had assured him that this was something they all did regularly, once every few rotations at least, so he’d set his jaw and sucked down each glass, his throat burning as the liquid fire scorched its way down his esophagus, offering what he could to the conversation and hoping against hope that this might be the last round.

Mejja elbowed him in the ribs roughly. “What’s up with you tonight? Are you not having a good time?”

He snapped himself out of his alcohol induced fog and sat up straighter. “No, no, I’m fine. That last shot just hit me hard I guess.”

Mejja scoffed. “That’s banthashit! You usually drink us under the table, isn’t that right Zaaj?”

Zaaj’s eyes widened just a little before he nodded in agreement. “Oh - oh yeah. You usually have like...  _ six  _ of those things before we call it a night.”

He didn’t see how that was possible. His stomach was churning already and he hadn’t finished half that much. Still, these were his friends and if they said that’s what he usually did, then that’s the way it was. He gripped his glass and brought it to his lips, taking another almost painful sip. Maybe his injuries or the medicine they’d given him to treat them was affecting his typical alcohol tolerance? It didn’t matter. He was tough and if they said he usually had six glasses of this white-hot jet fuel then by the Maker he’d have six. Even if they all came back up later.

His stomach quivered at the prospect but he smothered the feeling, for now at least, and jumped back into the conversation. “So, B’Nur, what were you saying about guard duty this afternoon?” He raised the glass again, drinking down the embers while simultaneously trying to put out the fire before it burned through his gut.

B’Nur continued conversationally, “Well, I was just saying Sari needs to be careful with that feisty little Togruta skug. I told him the queen wants her unharmed but he didn’t seem to even really hear me. You know how he gets sometimes and he seems pretty focused on her right now. I’d hate to see him get in trouble over that slave piece of trash.”

Another long drink, flames licking their way across his brain as he struggled to process B’Nur’s words.  _ Togruta _ ...

Zaaj chimed in, “Yeah she might be hot, but she’s not worth getting in trouble over. There’s plenty of other slaves he can have his pick of. And if he’s into Togs…” he huffed out a laugh, “well, we’ve got quite a few to choose from, don’t we?”

The other men laughed but Rex didn’t find it funny. He knew he should, but he just didn’t. The glass met his lips again, the tihaar smoldering and blazing down his throat. His glass was almost empty.

Mejja noticed and waved over the waitress, a pretty pink twi’lek in a skimpy dress that could barely be called clothes. As she approached their table Mejja demanded, “Another round of tihaar for  _ our friend  _ Captain Rex here!” 

Rex’s thick eyebrows furrowed together above his nose for a moment. It almost sounded mocking, the way that Mejja had said that. But with the alcohol pounding through the grey haze that was his thoughts right now, he couldn’t be sure of anything. Well, nothing other than that he was going to regret this next glass of tihaar anyway.

“Yes, sir,” she said evenly. As she turned to go, Mejja’s hand slid under the back of her skirt and he pinched her roughly. She barely jumped, maybe she was used to such crude gestures from him and the other patrons, but Rex did see her body subtly twitch. His thoughtful frown deepened but he made no move to stop his friend. 

She was a slave and this was the way of things. It was not his place to stop Mejja from asserting his control over this slave twi’lek, it was not his place to even care. But he felt like he did. Deep down inside, he felt like he did and the thought scared him. In an effort to hide his undesirable reaction from the group, he raised what was left of round three and drained it, stifling the choke and gag reflexes threatening to come up along with what he’d just swallowed.

“Yeah! That’s the spirit Rex!” cheered B’Nur. 

The waitress had walked away as his stomach still gently smoldered with the residual sensation of the drink.

Mejja was eyeing him appraisingly. “That make you  _ jealous _ , Rex?” His eyes were glinting almost malevolently, but that wasn’t right. Mejja was a good friend of his. They did this every week. He pushed his nagging doubts aside, into that part of his brain that was currently trying to trap all of the things he didn’t want to process. Mejja’s strange tone tonight and all of that tihaar he’d consumed so far being just two of those things. 

“You want her?” Mejja persisted. “You can have her, you know.” He may not be able to puzzle out the insinuations coloring Mejja’s words right now, but his meaning was clear. “If you want.”

He froze. She was a very attractive slave, perfect body, pleasing face and submissive demeanor. But something about the thought of having his way with her chilled his blood. Mejja wasn’t wrong. He knew he  _ could  _ have her if he wanted. He could have his choice of slaves and his rank afforded him almost first pick when new ones came in. But he couldn’t remember ever choosing one, ever slaking his lust with any of them. He shouldn't be surprised since so much of his memory was lost to him, but even now the very thought of it somehow seemed wrong. He was a man and sure, he’d felt attraction or arousal in the presence of some, but the thought of actually following the trail of his desires to completion with any of the slaves gave him chills of unease that he couldn’t explain.

“You’re awfully quiet,” remarked Zaaj.

“Just thinking,” Rex muttered noncommittally.

“Hm,” hummed Mejja quietly. “You know what I think, Rex?”

“Hm?” He didn’t like Mejja’s tone at all right now but he didn’t trust himself to speak.

“I think you want her. I think it’s been too long since you’ve cut loose and I think you’ve earned yourself a good time.”

It should have made him happy. Should have made him feel eager or excited or some other form of positive emotion. But instead it did really strange things to him. He felt anxious and afraid but the stirrings of arousal also danced across his lower abs to settle in his cock, making it twitch in anticipation of some action. His reaction disgusted him but he couldn’t control it and that fleeting thought made his stomach roll and twist violently again.

“You know what, Rex?” Mejja was speaking again and he was hanging on every word in a way that he never had been before. Like whatever came out of his mouth next was going to decide his fate or something. Like his next words were crucial. “I’m going to treat you tonight. Consider it my gift to you for your recent efforts in capturing the Jedi and that cute little Tog skug. For being such a  _ good friend _ to us, and to help you remember who you are and what you want. What do you think of that?”

He couldn’t say no. He wanted to but it wasn’t even really a question. It was a statement. And again, he reflected, Mejja was right in a way. This  _ was _ who he was. Why should he deny himself those pleasures in life?

He shouldn’t.

“Thank you Mejja. I - I don’t deserve it -”

“Oh, sure you do Captain Rex! My treat.  _ Our _ treat. What do you think, men? Does Rex deserve this?” he gestured to the table as a whole and they all erupted with cheers and encouragement and a hint of...jealousy or resentment maybe? It was some sentiment he couldn’t place right now between the renewed pounding in his head at the burst of noise and the trepidation of what was to come of the rest of his evening. 

Mejja didn’t wait for any further answer. “I’ll go arrange the details with Zadok.” He stood and made his way to the room behind the bar where Zadok had his office.

The waitress approached and set down the fresh glass of tihaar. He didn’t meet her eyes, choosing instead to pick up the glass and bring it slowly to his lips, barely drinking but using the movement to cover his unfavorable reactions to this whole situation and to make further speech for him impossible.

Mejja was back well before Rex was prepared, and he gripped the arm of the waitress harshly as she tried to make her way to the next table. “Your shift is over for now, skug. The rest of your night will be spent with this worthy gentleman,” he motioned to Rex, who took his cue and stood up, drained the tihaar in one gulp against his better judgement, almost instantaneously regretting the decision as he wobbled unsteadily. His legs felt like durasteel as he closed the distance between himself and the waitress, Mejja stepping aside and releasing her arm. 

The waitress looked nonplussed, like this was nothing new for her and that for some reason made the whole thing settle even more uneasily than the tihaar in his gut. 

He’d been told there was a room in the back that was used for things like this. He couldn’t remember ever being there, but that was no surprise since he remembered so little. However, he had been told where it was and he made his way there. He could feel all of the men - his friends - watching him intently, their eyes scorching into his back as he walked away. He was good with directions and he found the dark and empty room with no issues. The door was already open and he led her inside, his heart hammering uncontrollably in his chest.

He closed the door with a snap and they were plunged into shadow, dark enough to see silhouettes but not the finer details. Maybe that would make this easier somehow. He watched her begin to strip, the scraps she wore sliding from her body before he could stop her. She'd been wearing so little already and the room was so dark anyway that what he could see now wasn’t much different from what he could see before, but the knowledge that she was naked before him now did do something. His cock twitched again as his stomach rolled and flipped uncomfortably. 

Still he didn’t move. He should sate his desire, should just rush forward and  _ take _ it. That’s what they expected of him. This is who they say he was. But still he couldn’t move. While his cock twitched in need and excitement, he just stood there, biting the inside of his cheek while his short nails left marks in his palms in a last-ditch effort to stifle his body’s reactions. 

“Sir?” Her voice was small and questioning. Like she couldn’t understand his responses to her. Hell, maybe she couldn’t. Maybe this was the first time someone hadn’t rushed to her and thrown her down on that filthy bed in the corner and fucked her. But he’d already decided he wasn’t going to do that. Maker help him, he just couldn’t.

She took two tentative steps towards him, wanting to just get things over with maybe. She stood as tall as her body would allow and her lips came to rest near his ear. Her breath ghosted across the sensitive flesh there as she whispered. “The wall or the bed?” 

His cock was throbbing now and part of him wanted to be everything that they said he was and just  _ take  _ her and who gives a fuck if it was against the wall or on the bed. His breath was heavy and ragged but his voice was strong and his answer was final. 

“No.”

“Sir?”

Another deep breath. “I said,  _ no _ .” His hands wrapped firmly around her shoulders and he pushed her back, far enough away from him where he was no longer a threat. “Put your clothes back on, then get on the bed and get some sleep. You’re free to go as soon as the sun comes up.”

Her face was the very picture of confusion as she stood there in a daze, watching him sink to the floor against the wall, knees up and his head in his hands over the tops of them. He was sure she’d never had anyone do this before. Just reject her and tell her to go to sleep by herself. Part of him - the part they said should be using her right now - wasn’t entirely sure either. This was entirely out of character for who he was supposed to be and even his body was complaining about it. 

She was still just standing there.

“I mean it. Put your clothes on and get some sleep. I’m not going to touch you. I’m going to sit right here until morning and then I’ll be on my way.”

She finally picked her mouth up from her chin and worked it to form words. “B-but Sir I don’t under-”

“Do you  _ need  _ to understand?”

She shook her head.

“Good. Then do as I said.”

This time she complied, although casting furtive glances over her shoulder every so often to see if he was still serious. After a short time, he heard her settle onto the bed. His cock was still hard against his leg but his body’s reactions were already mercifully beginning to subside. 

He let a small sigh escape and nestled his head on top of his arms as comfortably as he could. This was going to be a long night.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for reading and I can't wait to hear your thoughts and comments! 💕


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rex gets a new assignment and Ahsoka finds herself in a very scary situation

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own Star Wars or any of it's characters. I do own Sari, Mejja, B'Nur and all of my other OCs in this story, although I don't really want them 
> 
> A special thank you so sushifish for looking over this chapter for me and for all of her positive encouragement and enthusiasm for this story. It means the world to me 😊

****

**Rex’s POV**

He ran a nervous hand over his stomach, smoothing down the coarse brown battleweave fabric of his overshirt before attaching his belt. He needed to look his best today for his meeting with Queen Scintel and he was unwilling to allow even one wrinkle to deface his garments. He snapped his belt into place and looked into the mirror, scanning the vision reflected back at him critically, checking for anything out of place. When he was sure everything was straight, crisp and clean, and in its proper place, he pulled his brass helmet down over his head and strode confidently towards the door. 

He had seen the queen before, just a couple of times - once when she was walking through the marketplace with Atai a few days ago and once yesterday flying high in the clouds above him on her brezak with one of her guards. He couldn’t ever remember meeting with her in person though. 

Actually, from what he knew of her, she only met with her subjects or guests by appointment and those were few and far between. That knowledge, almost more than anything else, was setting him on edge. 

Why would she summon him? 

The past couple of days had been fairly uneventful unless you counted B’Nur getting in a fight last night leaving Zadoks and ending up in the medical wing of the palace with severe trauma to his lungs. Other than that, all had been quiet in the city and Rex himself always stayed out of trouble. He held his tongue and performed his duties promptly and efficiently. He was a model soldier and always did as he was told. There was no need for him to even be a blip on Queen Scintel’s radar. In fact, he wasn’t aware that the queen even knew he existed as anything more than just another name on her guard roster. This invitation perplexed and unnerved him. 

Rex hadn’t gone to Zadoks last night. It had only been two standard rotations since his last visit and in his opinion that was far too soon to see another glass of tihaar. Two _hundred_ rotations might be too soon to see another glass of tihaar. He refused to even entertain how he felt at the possibility of seeing that twi’lek waitress again. 

He’d had to concoct an obscenely detailed story for his night with her that didn’t happen, his friends insisting that he tell it at least a dozen times already since it had...well since he’d pretended that it had happened. He sighed, frustration and confusion washing over him as his mind jerked him unwillingly back to that evening. 

He’d refused her. His body had been willing, hell more than willing, but still he’d firmly rejected her. She had been Mejja’s gift to him, he’d paid for her and Rex had turned her down, opting instead to feign sleep, curled up in an uncomfortable heap on that filthy stone floor while he’d insisted she take the bed. If Mejja knew what had actually happened…

He didn’t know what Mejja would think of him - what they would _all_ think of him. He didn’t know anymore what he thought of himself. He didn’t understand why he’d done what he’d done. He had no idea why he’d refuted the natural order of things that night, denying his body its basic desires in favor of making himself as uncomfortable as possible both physically and emotionally. The aftermath of his decision was still haunting him. 

If they ever found out, he didn’t know what they’d do. They’d think him a coward maybe. They would think he was weak or inferior or maybe even unfit. He’d become a pariah. Men just didn’t do things like what he’d done that night. You don’t just _refuse_ a gift like that. It went against everything he’d been told and behavior like his was nothing short of an aberration in society. A terrifying possibility suddenly whispered its way across his jumbled thoughts.

_What if Queen Scintel knows the truth_?

His heart began to pound frantically, its rhythm kicking him in the chest like actual physical impacts as the fear of his suspicions began to overtake him. She _couldn’t_ know anything...could she? The story he’d fabricated was believable, he had made sure that there were no holes in it, no small detail he’d left out. It was thorough and convincing, he was positive of that. After all, he’d had all night to think about it since he wasn’t doing anything else with his time, he reflected almost bitterly. No one had been in there with him other than the twi’lek woman and his friends were all long gone when he’d finally left. He was sure that waitress wouldn’t say anything. Why would she? 

Or _would_ she?

Maybe she had been happy that he hadn’t touched her, or maybe shocked or even offended or...or _something_ and maybe she’d told someone about her night that should have involved sex but somehow didn’t...Maybe she’d told someone who had then told someone else who had gone on to tell someone else until it made its way all the way up to the queen?

He let that line of thought bounce around in his mind for a moment before dismissing it. No, he didn’t think the waitress would talk. It wouldn’t be in her best interest to do so. _She_ might get punished if she told a story like that and Zadok found out, which he undoubtedly would. Zadok would think she hadn’t been good enough somehow to tempt Rex into having her for the night and he would whip her for it. No, it wouldn’t serve any purpose for the waitress to talk about what had actually happened - or not happened - in that dark room two rotations ago.

But if she hadn’t said anything, then he couldn’t think of anyone who could have even known the truth, much less get word of it to the queen. And if she didn’t know about his shortcomings from two nights ago, then what was the purpose of her invitation? 

His questioning had brought him around full circle to the exact place where he’d begun - without a clue as to why he’d received the summons, only now weighted down with extra anxiety about this meeting. He had reached the steps of the palace and the guards at the gate stepped aside to let him through. He swallowed, his throat suddenly parched but his palms sweating as he was escorted by a third guard to the throne room.

The palace was large and lavish, white marble floors patterned with intricate designs in deep greens were connected to the ceiling by rich red pillars adorned with gold. Hanging flowers in vivid purples entwined with thick green vines lined the walls and a pair of Kiros birds fluttered quietly above him to settle on the arm of the golden throne looming at the end of the long foyer he now crossed. 

The throne was large enough to seat three beings comfortably in its center and it was nothing short of imposing. It looked to be gold and brass, emblazoned with subtle red and green embellishments to mimic the floor and the columns. The cut of it was all hard lines and razor-sharp edges, as relentless and unyielding as the Zygerrian people and it was set high up on a dais, as formidable and imperious as the woman who sat upon it: Queen Miraj Scintel.

As he approached, he could see a man standing next to the throne as well: the Jedi from the auction. His muscles flexed as he sized up the man, taking note of his posture and expression, looking for any hint of treachery against the queen. The man’s eyes widened as they met Rex’s but he didn’t look threatening. He looked complacent and resigned maybe but nothing in his stance or demeanor suggested he was anything to worry about so Rex brought his focus back to the queen. He could wonder at this strange man and his baffling presence here later. 

He stopped at a respectable distance from the throne, immediately bending his knee and dropping humbly to the floor while bowing his head in a perfect example of courtesy and obedience. “Most High Queen of Zygerria, I come before you at your command,” he announced, using the most formal and proper greeting he could recall. 

He didn’t dare move until she acknowledged him and returned his greeting. She didn’t make him wait long. He heard the rustling of thick and heavy fabrics and a light step moving towards him. “You may rise.”

He lifted himself up slowly, shoving his nervousness aside and forcing himself to meet her gaze with a confidence that he didn’t feel.

She was a striking woman, tall and graceful and the very epitome of what a Zygerrian queen should look like. Her features were sharp and elegant but those acute angles only served to enhance her beauty. She curled her lips into a small smile that didn’t quite reach her eyes. Her eyes remained shrewd and calculating as they studied him.

“Captain Rex, is it not?”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

“Hm,” she hummed as she looked him over, her appraising gaze causing his body to tense. “I don’t believe we’ve met before. Am I correct?”

“Yes, Your Highness, that’s correct.”

“A yes or no will suffice.”

“Yes Yo -” he caught himself abruptly and corrected his answer. “Yes.”

“Good. I’ve heard a lot about you, Captain Rex.” His body stiffened and his pulse quickened as his anxiety rose. “I hear you are a model soldier, that you never fail to perform any duty you are given. Is that also correct?”

He swallowed slowly, trying to hide the movement of the lump in his throat by dipping his head just the slightest bit. He knew it was no use and that she’d see right through him. He chose to believe her question was referring to his official duties rather than his unofficial ones as he formulated his answer. “Yes.”

“Hm,” she said again thoughtfully. She glided towards him, her movements as graceful as her form. Her long, slender hand reached up to grip his chin. He was just slightly shorter than she was and she tilted his chin up to better look down into his eyes. Her claws were digging into his skin roughly as she shifted his head from side to side, examining him, though for what he didn’t know. 

Either finding whatever she was looking for or simply bored, she released him gently, her fingers almost caressing over the crescent shaped impressions her nails had dug into his skin. Her gesture was both erotic and frightening. A shiver that he couldn’t stop ran down his spine and he was sure she could feel it before her hand dropped from his jaw. Thankfully, if she did, she chose to ignore it. She brushed past him, her shoulder running along his as she moved behind him. He wasn’t sure if he should turn around to face her or if he was supposed to stay rooted to this spot, as his body wanted to do. He chose the latter.

She was close behind him and her warm breath tickled across his ear as she leaned in. “I believe you.” 

His breathing was a little erratic from his previous nervousness and her closeness, but her statement helped him ground himself and rein in his emotions. She sounded like she did in fact believe him. He still had no clue why he was here but he was now at least convinced that it had nothing whatsoever to do with his failures from two rotations ago at Zadoks. He willed himself to stand up straighter, stiff and formal, awaiting her explanation or orders.

“Hm,” she said again. He could hear her moving as she walked all the way around him, could practically feel her eyes wandering over him and inspecting him as she circled. He wanted to shift his stance under her scrutiny but he resisted the urge and held his position, his posture giving nothing away of his uneasy feelings.

“I have an assignment for you, Captain Rex.”

He wasn’t sure if she was expecting an answer. He opted for silence, hoping his instincts proved right. He watched her smile and he was sure he’d guessed correctly.

She continued. “I need you to take over…” She cut herself off and let out a light chuckle. “Anakin, would you be so kind as to accompany Atai to the arena? I require you both to inspect the repairs for the upcoming auction.” 

Atai grumbled out a ‘Yes, my queen,’ looking like she may as well have assigned him sanitation detail. The Jedi - Anakin - nodded and began to walk down the steps but his eyes were boring into Rex’s. His gaze was just as searching as the queen’s had been moments ago, but it felt completely different somehow. Safer maybe, although that wouldn’t make any sense so he pushed the feeling aside. 

Anakin made his way to Rex, his shoulder jostling him hard as he passed. As soon as he realized he’d bumped into him, Anakin’s hand shot out to grip Rex’s arm. He met Rex’s eyes again and his accompanying words were slow and emphatic. “I’m sorry, _friend_. I’ll try to be more careful in the future.”

The queen was watching this exchange with interest, her eyes flitting between the two of them and her delicate eyebrows narrowed. “Thank you, Anakin. That will be all.” It was a clear dismissal and Anakin couldn’t ignore it, so he released Rex’s arm along with his eyes and continued on his way to the door. As Rex watched him go, he couldn’t help but think that something about him was so very familiar. And yet there was no way he could know this man. Confusion and frustration pooled in his mind.

Queen Scintel turned back to him as Anakin and Atai’s footsteps bagan to fade away down the hall.

“My apologies, Captain. Where were we? Ah, yes, I remember now; I have an assignment for you. I will need you to take over the guarding of a very…” She allowed herself a quiet chuckle before continuing. “A very _special_ prisoner for me. With B’Nur currently indisposed and several other guards still unable to resume duty after that unfortunate incident at the auction last week, it seems I am shorthanded.”

She watched him carefully. His posture remained rigid and his face stoic, a perfect example of what she expected of a Captain in the Zygerrian army. Seemingly satisfied, she continued. “This prisoner is a Jedi and very cunning and dangerous. Perhaps you’ve heard of her? Ahsoka Tano.”

He forced his expression to remain neutral even as his brows wanted to furrow together in contemplation. That name _did_ sound familiar, but only as something like a blurry concept of a memory. The merest ghost of an impression maybe. There was no substance to it, no foundation, just some indistinct and hazy feelings associated with it. Those phantom feelings were reminiscent of what he’d experienced when he'd drunk the tihaar but not in a bad way - warm, smoldering, tart and sweet at the same time, deep and intense. He didn't understand these whispers of sensations and they weren't anything really, just undefined shadows of things floating around deep in his subconscious with absolutely nothing to cling to. 

He answered honestly, "No."

She studied him for a moment and seemed to decide he was telling the truth. "Good. You will take over for Sari this evening. He will be moved to the day shift and you will have the evening shift. Captain Rex,” she paused for emphasis, her eyes burning into his own, “I want no harm to come to her. I have…” she tilted her head to the side, her smile widening to reveal her glittering pointed canines, “ _Plans_ for her.” Her eyes continued to probe his own, hunting for something. He didn’t so much as flinch. “Hm. Good. I am sure you’ll serve me well. You are dismissed.”

He nodded formally. “Yes, Your Majesty.” He turned to go and he’d made it no more than a few steps before she spoke again.

“Oh, and Captain Rex…” He stopped and turned to her. “I am putting my trust in you. Do not make me regret it.” She waved her hand carelessly, dismissing him before he even had a chance to respond. 

He turned again and made his way down the long entryway, deep in thought. Once he was clear of the main entryway and out of sight and earshot of the queen, he risked a quick glance at the communicator on his belt. The shift change for guarding the prisoners would be taking place shortly and he would need to head to the lower levels now if he was going to make it on time. 

He let out a small sigh, making a right towards the dungeons and his new assignment.

**Ahsoka’s POV**

Well, today certainly was starting off differently. 

Instead of B’Nur supervising her this morning, it had been Mejja. That had been a welcome change. Mejja had clearly not wanted to be there and that suited her just fine. He’d brought his datapad with him and he’d been completely ignoring her in favor of searching the holonet and sending messages. He clearly didn’t see her as a threat to escape and therefore not worth his oh-so-valuable time.

Not that she was complaining.

She had actually been able to get a very quick wash today in the fresher and she felt cleaner than she had in days, which might actually literally be true. She would never risk the fresher when Sari was on duty and sometimes not even with B’Nur standing guard. But Mejja hadn’t even looked up from whatever he was doing when she’d made her way there and hadn’t so much as shifted his position on the chair when she’d come out. Too bad he couldn’t guard her all the time. If she wanted to, she could have broken out of here no problem with him standing watch.

But of course she’d had no word from Anakin and she had no hint at all as to what might have happened to Obi-Wan. And then of course there was the mystery of Rex. Since Sari had given her what little information he had, she’d had no updates, no confirmations or rejections of any of her theories on what had become of him. She began to wonder, for what felt like the millionth time this rotation alone, how kriffing long she’d have to be stuck in this pit with these nerfherders. 

She sighed, releasing her breath slowly so as to draw as little attention to it as possible. Mejja didn’t so much as flinch.

She was just about to lay down and attempt a short nap when she heard footsteps coming down the steps. She sat up on the bed, alert. It wasn’t time for the shift change yet. 

Mejja finally tore his eyes from the datapad to look up. “Oh, hey Sari. You’re early.” He yawned and Ahsoka fought the urge to roll her eyes. Yeah, he’d had _such_ a hard day so far.

“I know. There’s been a change of plans. I will be taking over this shift and Captain Rex will be taking over the evening shift now that B’Nur’s gotten himself put in medical.”

Now Mejja looked affronted. “Why should Rex get the evening shift? Why can’t he patrol the gates or supervise the preparations for the auction?” 

“The queen didn’t fill me in on the ‘why’ of it, only that this is what we’ve been assigned until further notice.”

Mejja huffed at that. “Banthashit! I’ve been here longer than -”

Ahsoka’s montrals perked up at this snippet of information.

“ _Shhh!_ ” Cautioned Sari. “You need to _keep your mouth shut_. I understand, but it is not our decision to make. Her word is final and this is what she’s decided. You’ll be relieving Aolek for the rest of this shift now and then you are free until your shift tomorrow. Why don’t you just go and get it over with and then we can meet for drinks after to discuss this further. This…” his eyes flickered over to Ahsoka, “is neither the time nor the place, Mejja.”

Mejja nodded. “Alright. That sounds good. You know, I think tonight I’ll pay for that twi’lek myself. If _half_ of what Rex said is true, it’ll be well worth the credits.”

She couldn’t help but scowl, her face twisting into a grimace of disgust tinged with disbelief. These men were complete pieces of rakeweed and she shouldn’t be surprised that they’d said something like that. But the comment hit her hard, not just because of the subject matter but also because of Rex’s name thrown in so casually with those nauseating words. This probably only meant that it wasn’t her Rex after all. She bit the inside of her cheek in an effort to hide her reactions to the whole thing. 

Mejja may have missed it but Sari didn’t.

“That sounds like a plan, Mejja. Now you run along and get that shift over with so we can be on our way.”

“See you in a bit!” Mejja called from halfway up the stairs.

Sari didn’t respond. The smile plastered to his face was sharp and predatory as he rounded on her. “So little _skug,_ you probably think you learned something really valuable just now, don’t you? You might even think that tiny bit of information Mejja was incompetent enough to give you will be of some help to you. It won’t.”

Ahsoka said nothing. There was something in his gaze tonight that immediately set her on edge. Not that his presence didn’t already do that, but this time felt different. The way he was looking at her wasn’t so much a threat of something that might come as the warning of something that would. She fought back her shiver.

His smirk pulled wider as though he knew that he was getting under her skin even though she was positive she showed no outward reaction. He took one step towards her cell.

“You know what? I’m feeling generous tonight. I think I’d like to give you _more_ information.” He cocked his head to the side and she watched his feral teeth glint in the dim light. “Would you like that, little _skug_? Would you like more information?”

Her heart was pounding and her pulse was thumping along with it. She did want information. _Any_ information. Even Sari’s taunting information. But she didn’t want to give him the satisfaction of her asking for it either so she remained silent, hoping he’d just give it to her because he wanted to for some reason.

Fat chance.

“Or maybe I was incorrect. Maybe you’d prefer I didn’t divulge anything more about your precious _Captain Rex_.” He spat the name at her like it was poison in his mouth, warning flashes of anger passing over his eyes. It was there and gone in an instant and she could have convinced herself she’d imagined it if she hadn’t been hyperfocused on his eyes at the time. Maybe this information was worth a response. “Maybe you don’t want to know more about him.”

She found her voice although it came out more quiet and hesitant than she’d hoped. “I - I want to know.”

His smile was definitely a leer now and his eyes sparkled with triumph at breaking her just that little bit. “You’ll have to ask me nicely.”

She bit her tongue; in for one credit, in for a dozen. “Please.” It was more of a growl than an answer.

He chuckled darkly at that and wagged his taloned finger at her. She wanted to bite it off. “Ah, ah, ah. I think you can do better than that.”

She glared at him. This was too kriffing much. “How good is your information?”

“At this rate, you’ll never find out, will you?”

She bit her tongue again, fighting the nearly overwhelming urge to scream. She was going to _kill_ Anakin after this mission. She wanted nothing more than to rip that smug look from his haughty face but instead she choked her anger down, swallowed deep and replied as evenly as she could. “Will you please tell me?”

If she didn’t think his self-satisfied smile could stretch any wider, she was mistaken. It took over his face now and that fleeting glimpse of malevolence was back, smoldering just behind his over-bright eyes. Maybe she didn’t want whatever information he had to offer after all. Anything that made him this excited couldn’t be a good thing.

“That’s a good little _skug_. I knew you could be trained.”

Her whole body was buzzing, hatred and anger like she’d never felt before coursing through her veins at his words. Her hands had balled unconsciously into fists at her sides and she hastily unclenched them, hoping she’d been fast enough. She knew she hadn’t as he chuckled again, devouring her reactions and savoring the taste. She wasn’t sure _any_ information could be worth enduring this.

“But I did promise you information, didn’t I?”

She hoped he didn’t expect an answer because she was at the end of her rope here and she wasn’t going to give any more ground. Half of her knew she’d already given up too much. He chose to let his rhetorical question pass unanswered.

“So... _Captain Rex_. He is a good friend of mine, did you know that?”

She had heard the other guards talk about Sari and Rex going with them for drinks. This was old information and certainly not worth what she’d just had to go through to get it. She sincerely hoped he was going to give her something better than this.

“I see you did know that. Did you know that he went out with Mejja and some of the other guards for drinks the other night?”

Another rhetorical and useless question. He had been here when she’d heard them talking about going out that night. More useless information.

“Ah, you are a perceptive piece of Tog scum, aren’t you? I see that you did know that.”

She bit the inside of her cheek, using quite literally all of her willpower to keep her hands from fisting at her sides again. She decided to cross her arms instead, immediately regretting the gesture as his eyes darted away from hers to land on her chest. 

Her outfit didn’t leave much to the imagination but crossing her arms gave her cleavage she didn’t normally have. A fact which she’d never really regretted until this moment when she felt his eyes burning into it. She shifted where she had her arms crossed so that they were up higher and hiding her cleavage instead. It was an uncomfortable and unnatural way to hold her arms but she didn’t care. It was necessary right now and she’d maintain it as long as needed.

He huffed out a laugh and the sound made her skin crawl like she was covered in dagopillars. His eyes raised slowly back up her body to lock again on her eyes.

“Did you know _Captain Rex_ had four glasses of tihaar that night?”

This didn’t sound like her Captain Rex at all. Not that he never drank, but he certainly never drank like that. Sure he and his men had the occasional wild night at 79’s when they were on leave in Coruscant, but Rex always seemed to be the calm and collected one. The voice of reason in the group and the one who made sure they all got home safely. She wasn’t sure even Fives had ever had four glasses of tihaar. 

There was, of course, always the chance Sari was lying to her. 

She hadn’t said a word but he clearly liked her negative reaction, so he continued. “Did you know Mejja bought him a slave that night and then _Captain Rex_ fucked her?”

The way he’d said it felt as though he’d physically slapped her in the face. She nearly took a step back at the force of his words as much as the knowledge itself. Well, there was no way now that this could be her Captain Rex. He would absolutely never do such a thing, whether he was undercover or not. Sari’s taunt from a couple of nights ago floated into the forefront of her mind.

_He's just like me, actually. He's a_ man _. A man who is probably in that bar right now drinking away his paycheck like I will be later. A man who might even be fucking some random little_ skug _who was stupid enough to cross his path tonight._

Correctly reading her reactions, Sari continued with much more relish now that he knew his words had hurt her. “Ah, I see this is new information to you. As I said, I’m in a generous mood tonight. I believe I want to tell you more.”

She wanted to tell him no but her throat wasn’t working. She tried to nod but the movement was so small that he either didn’t see it, or more likely he didn’t care, so he continued.

“He led her into the back room.” His voice was low and dangerous but it was somehow hypnotizing as well and while he was speaking, she felt helpless to do much more than listen. “He lifted her up and slammed her against the wall.”

Before Ahsoka could stop the thoughts, her mind again brought forward a very inappropriate image of herself with Rex instead. He had her pinned up against the wall, one strong hand holding both of hers above her head and the other squeezing her hips hard enough to bruise. His mouth was on her neck and the picture was so vivid she could almost feel his teeth scraping along her skin. She ripped the image forcefully from her mind and brought her focus back to Sari, hoping he hadn’t noticed anything. She shouldn’t be thinking things like that about Rex and _especially_ not right now.

Sari took a step towards her. “He ripped off her clothes and pulled himself out.” Another step towards her and this time she did retreat a step. She could see his hand twitching forward towards his belt and she swallowed hard, fear and adrenaline replacing any and all other feelings inside of her.

“He stroked himself a few times but his body was already hard and ready.” Another step and his hand was on his belt. She had backed up to the back wall and could go no further. 

“He sank his teeth into her shoulder, marking her.” He flashed his own teeth in a snarl at her. He’d reached the bars now and they both stared at each other. It was his move. If he was going to try something, he’d have to use his key to unlock the cell and enter. If he risked that, she could flee. She could see it all playing out behind his burning eyes, weighing the risks and the rewards of his impending decision.

She watched his long slender fingers unlatch his belt with a small click of metal against metal. His eyes were shooting daggers into hers. “He shoved himself inside of her and he _fucked her_.” Her eyes widened as he raised his hand, key out and ready to unseal the lock. 

Her heart was beating so fast she was sure her small frame wouldn’t be able to contain it any longer. She was breathing like a startled lothcat and every muscle in her body was tense and ready to snap. His teeth flashed at her as he touched the key to the locking mechanism.

“Sari!”

His hand snapped back as though burned and he turned to the side. She heard the noises of metal clanking noisily together and she knew he was hastily locking his buckle again. He was finished practically before she could blink and he’d turned around to face the voice, looking as put together as he always did and for all the world like he’d been doing nothing more mundane than maybe inspecting the area around her cell.

She on the other hand was frozen in place for what felt like the millionth time this rotation. That voice...she’d know it anywhere. Her heart felt like it was going to detonate at any moment, like it was flaming rydonium behind her ribs, until he stepped into view. 

Everything stopped, like the world was no more than a blurry still life around her.

  
It _was_ Rex.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for reading! I love to hear your comments and insights on this chapter and I look forward to hearing what you thought of it! 💕

**Author's Note:**

> I love all of your comments and thoughts on the characters and the story! Please let me know what you think 😊


End file.
